Archive for September, 2011

Daily prayer:
“Dear God thank you that Aria is in heaven and us in the world. Amen’

“Us not a family, we have no sister”

“I am alive, see my fingers move. Aria’s finger’s not move”

“I like Omaha, New Zealand is boring”

“Why we leave Omaha?”

Prayer request: We have all been fairly sick. Asher earlier this week. Me now and Hamish likely to follow. Bad colds and trouble adjusting to brrrrrrr NZ houses. And likely fairly average immune systems too.

Yesterday was Fathers Day in NZ and Australia. We didn’t celebrate Fathers Day in the US this year, we had hoped Aria would be better and off the vent to enjoy celebrating her daddy perhaps in time for NZ fathers day. Sadly she died the very next day.

Both days have been very difficult for Hamish, a devoted dad who cared very deeply for his little girl. Hamish was there every night with Aria, often getting little sleep. He loved spending time with her and she with him. There is simply nothing, apart from God more important to Hamish than his family. He gave up his job and life to care for Aria, supported by a society allowing him to do so freely.

We sang a song last night at church it’s first verse was this ‘How deep the Fathers love for us, How vast beyond all measure’ All day I had been thinking of Hamish’s love for Aria and grieving for his loss. All week I had been struggling with God’s love for me- if He loved me why did he take something so precious to me?

Of course I have no answer to that question and probably never will, not in this lifetime. But if a human can love a child like Hamish did Aria then I know God must love me 1000 times more. And maybe the true love of a parent is to want and need your child to be in heaven with God and know that the burden of this world is over for them. God did the right thing by her and our family. But our hurting hearts still have a lot of healing to do.

We miss her. She is smiling in that photo by the way! It’s an Aria smile.